The present disclosure relates generally to information handling systems, and more particularly to routing packets via networked information handling systems based on feedback.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handlings systems such as, for example, switch devices, router devices, and/or other networking devices, are often used to route packets through a network. One example of a routing strategy used to route packets is the Equal Cost Multi-Path (ECMP) routing strategy, where next-hop packet forwarding to a single destination may occur over multiple “best paths” that are determined according to routing calculations. The ECMP routing strategy is useful with most routing protocols, as each networking device in a path operates to perform the per-hop decision making. However, ECMP techniques used by networking devices to determine which of its ECMP links in its ECMP link group over which to forward a packet are subject to some issues. For example, one method for determining which ECMP link in an ECMP link group over which to forward a packet is via a hashing operation, which is meant to distribute packets randomly over the ECMP links in the ECMP link groups. Another method for determining which ECMP link in an ECMP link group over which to forward a packet is Dynamic Load Balancing, which selects ECMP links in the ECMP link group based on their relative utilization levels. However, such conventional ECMP link selection methods often can lead to non-optimal paths for the packet through the network, as there may be issues in the other networking devices and/or their ECMP link groups downstream that are not considered in the packet forwarding decision being made by any particular networking device.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved packet routing system.